Not a War President

What can we learn from the few sentences President Obama devoted to foreign policy in his speech to Congress tonight?

The main lesson is how very few the sentences were. Yes, this was a speech focused on the economy. But it was also Obama’s first address to Congress, and his first to the nation since his inauguration. Obama did acknowledge in passing that for seven years we have been “a nation at war.” But that fact was barely reflected in his text. The treatment of foreign policy was perfunctory at best.

Obama did say he’s “carefully reviewing our policies in both wars.” “War” is just one area in which the president conducts and reviews public policy, apparently no more urgent than energy, health care or education--indeed, perhaps less so. You’d never know from the one-sentence discussion of Afghanistan that just last week the president had ordered an additional 17,000 troops there. Obama doesn’t seem to think his responsibility as commander in chief is in any way special. He certainly felt no responsibility even to begin to educate the public about this theater to which he’s committing additional American soldiers.

Instead, both the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan were treated as sideshows to “a new era of engagement” that Obama claims has begun. The only particular place mentioned by Obama, in addition to Iraq and Afghanistan/Pakistan, was Israel: “To seek progress toward a secure and lasting peace between Israel and her neighbors, we have appointed an envoy to sustain our effort.” The Israeli-Arab dispute and its envoy merits a mention. Yet Iran and its nuclear program does not?

This was not the speech of a man who even contemplates the possibility of using force within the next year to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons. This was not the speech of a man who thinks America needs to be reminded about the dangers out there in the world, because Americans might have to be summoned to deal with them. This was not the speech of a man who thinks of himself as a war president.

Also, it's strange how you talk about him not talking about war but neglect to talk about his commitment to troops - which the Republicans and the prior admin. did not do. Now troops will receive pay for their services and proper health care. Yeah that's not a war President but a President who cares about his troops.

"We’ll eliminate the no-bid contracts that have wasted billions in Iraq, and reform our defense budget so that we’re not paying for Cold War-era weapons systems we don’t use."
President Obama, State of the Union Address, February 25, 2009

Is this the statement that hurt you so much Kristol?

You're nothing but a shill for the Military Contracting Industry Kristol.

The Americans and the world have suffered for seven years under the presidency of Mr. Krystol's beloved war persident George W. Bush. We can't even begin to know how many future generations have to suffer as the result of the arogance and wrong doings of President Bush and his administration. It definitely is refreshing to see a president who is not a war president. I'd like to suggest that Mr. Krystol stop making rounds of so-called liberal newspapers and limit himself to write for his like-minded conservative readers in Weekly Standard.

So - Kristol wants Obama to telegraph his plans in advance while the whole world is listening. I'm no military expert like Kristol, but that doesn't sound smart. Antagonizing the enemy with loud-mouthed bullying that you can't back up, a la George Bush, also sounds pretty dumb.

In due course the Post will learn what The New York Times learned about Bill Kristol: he is a self-styled intellectual in decline whose simple-minded rightwing dogma is ignored by thinking conservatives. He bored Times readers.

That's right Billy, with the last election, America's priorities have shifted from fighting Israel's wars to fighting for American jobs, American education and American healthcare. I know Bill, the world is cazy.

As already noted Kristol's main goal in life is to foster a war upon Iran. If Israel wants a nuclear weapon free zone in the M/East, it should step up to the plate and sign the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty and grant access to IAEA inspections of its nuclear facilities at Dimona. Iran has not bothered its neigbors militarily for hundreds of years---something Israel cannot say during its brief 60 years. Iran has as much right to nuclear energy use as the next nation and also nuclear weapons considering the neighborhood it lives in.

I agree that President Obama failed to educate the public on foreign affairs. But Mr Kristol is doing the same, by failing to use this space to address some issues or critical importance.

- A few days ago, the government of Pakistan handed over the northern provinces to the Taliban. Muslim extremists are closer than ever to get their hands on Pakistan's nukes. That's a far greater threat than Iran.

- Nobody knows what is going to happen with Guantanamo detainees. Europe won't take them. More likely, they will be sent to some Arab countries, where they will rejoin Al-Qaeda.

- An "envoy" is now handling US affairs in the Middle East. Meanwhile, the role of the Secretary of State has been reduced to attend talk shows in Asia.

Geeeeeze....where do you want to go marching off to war this week? Haven't you and your neocon friends involved us in enough wars? I We're broke! I think President Obama covered all the bases well in his speech tonight. We Americans know very well the theaters where our troops are being committed -- we've been paying for it for almost 8 years. If the Bush administration hadn't blown the war in Afghanistan in the first place while they went trotting off to Iraq, we wouldn't be in this situation. I loved what he said about ending the no-bid contracts which have wasted billions and made millionaires of all your neocon friends. How you can snipe about President Obama after the mess of the last 8 years of Republican rule is totally beyond my comprehension! I also appreciate that the cost of these wars is now going to be in the budget. The fact that it wasn't before is a disgrace! When I read articles like yours, it reminds me of why I left the Republican party 4 years ago! I don't know this party anymore.

He touched on foreign issues as they needed to be and focused on the more important and immediate problems.

Kristol will never have anything good to say about Obama because he doesn't think for himself. He is programed to find negative views, regardless of how trivial it may be, just sake of opposing. Its going to be a long 8 years for this creep.

" Compare this to Bush in 2004 "We are at war if you do not vote for me we lose".

Posted by: DrCha | February 25, 2009 1:20 AM "

Yes, that's a direct quote I believe. Very nice.

Correct me if I am wrong, but did the Dems not run in 2004 on a retreat platform? Now, retreat is a plausible platform to run on if you think the mission is a mistake/unwinnable, but doesn't retreat entail defeat?

This was the speech of a COMMANDER-IN-CHIEF who has to make choices -- hard choices -- because of all the mistakes YOUR guy made over 8 years -- partly because of policies you, Mr. Kristol, shoved down the throats of the American people.

Who knows what our country would be like today if we had not started that 3 Trillion Dollar, unnecessary war in Iraq -- not even counting the precious lives lost.

So -- let's get our country back into a position to really protect our shores from REAL enemies and hope that having an intelligent president, who believes in diplomacy can buy us time while we rebuild our military, our financial markets and our confidence before our "next war."

[why is mr. "everything-i-say-has-been-wrong-for-the-last-eight-years" kristol writing for the washington post after being fired by the ny times? just ask'n.]

Who pays you to write this stuff? I'm sure the WaPo doesn't have the budget these days. The Weekly Standard is just a front for money laundering, you aren't really a capitalist enterprise. I'm sure AIPAC is too smart to pay you, or so my ex-Mossad and IAF buddies here in Silicon Valley say. Heritage? AEI?

You aren't a licensed lobbyist, so clamoring for JSF and more ABM spending isn't lining your pockets.

Shut up, you moron. Just shut up. You are nothing but a mouthpiece for the party of incompetence and blather. Just go the hell away, Kristol, you moron. Is it possible for a person to be more negative and out of touch? (Well, maybe, but they left the government to the grown ups on January 20.)

the only good thing about having william "the bloody" kristol at the wapo is that you can post comments immediately unlike the ny times. so i can immediately post that kristol is nothing but a bloodthirsty war criminal. even in the middle of the WORST economic catastrophe in two generations, all the disgraceful chicken hawk kristol can do is to complain that the president isn't devoting enough time to bombing brown people! je sus, people are losing their homes, their jobs, their futures, and this azzhole wants to keep talking about war. good god, it's beyond nauseating.

I must admit it is hard to understand why William Kristol is still being paid as a commentator. I did not know the NYT let him go, but good for the NYT.
Obama, hopefully, is not a war president. GWB called himself a war president, but he very actively avoided being a war "participant" in a time when ordinary people were being drafted. Clinton at least was honest about it.
If Kristol is so brilliant, how can he so assiduously avoid GWB's avoidance of any war service? It is hypocrisy at its finest.

I logged on to point out that the Washington Post has either no shame, or no standards. Most people, when they fail, fail downwards: Kristol gets the boot from the NY Times, and WaPo decides to crown him one of "The Post's Opinion Writers"?

Seems that I don't really have to express this, however, as ninety percent of the preceding comments say much the same thing.

Unfortunately, the other ten percent is anti-Semitic drivel.

Let's be clear: you can recognize that Kristol is a lying mediocrity, without making any reference to his religion. Furthermore, you can recognize that the neocons are on the wrong side of history, without heaping vitriol on Israel.

I assure you: Jews tend, on the whole, to be much more impressive than putzes like Kristol. And Israel is a great nation, unfairly tainted by its (recent) association with the American right.

It used to be that Americans of all stripes identified with Israel -- a democracy threatened by thugs and tyrants -- but thanks to Kristol and his dim minions, Israel is now seen as a marginal wingnut cause, somehow not aligned with America's interests.

Kristol is loathsome, but the anti-Semites here are worse. A pox on both of their houses.

No flight suit. No strutting. No "Bring 'em on." No "Bombs Over Tehran."

You thought the whole world, the entire social order, and the Republic itself ended on 9/11, and that the neo-con ticket was punched forever. But then Lehman Brothers went under, and that changed the world more than the towers falling. Your agenda isn't even on the table anymore. I'm sure the whining we're reading here will be a template for your every column here on out. Where will you go next when the Post gets rid of you for being boring?

You think you're unhappy now because you're not going to get a third front for your birthday, wait until Obama starts cutting budgets at DoD. The man says he's serious about deficit control. Just how do you think he's going to manage it?

As for now, the surge is a great success and we need to stay forever, that was your line only last month, right? Iraq was the jewel in Bush's crown, remember? Well, if it's not broke, don't fix it.

But I thought conservatives were supposed to be the haters! Nothing quite like a bunch of WaPo readers frothing at the mouth and sounding like a lynch mob. Calm down boys and girls. If Obama is really Jesus and Bush Satan like so many of you think, they'll be no need to attack Kristol--he'll simply fade into oblivion. But here's betting Obama is just a talker who's winging it in the face of intractable threats that won't disappear just because the evil Bush is gone--and that Kristol will write many "I told you so" columns before this is done.

Sorry, razor1, you're expecting a bruised and sorry public to forget the past 8 years as you do, to forget that Mr. Kristol is one of the more prominent neo-cons with a proven track record of being wrong. You're trying to get us to be ashamed of our anger at this representative of the Republican disasters, when the people who should be ashamed of what they've brought upon this country are they themselves. There's no shame or apology there - so thank goodness for righteous anger from the rest of us. It'll be a long time before your "shame on you for being so mean and hateful" has any meaningful resonance again.

Whoa.... Why are all these people attacking Bill Kristol? Trolls? Or if they really believe that the war Kristol says is 'on,' is actually false, why don't they say it? It seems to me that most critics on this page, don't have ANYTHING to say about whether or not the war against Islamic extremism is for real or not. Ok, fine. Let's pretend that Bush and the neocons invented a fictitious enemy. You are betting your sons lives that you are right. Because if they nuke an American city or do something comparably bad to us, after they have radicalized the land of Islam further, more American blood will have to be spilled later than if we deal with it today. I, for one, think you critics have your heads in the sand and I would rather fight them now, at less cost of our blood and treasure, than later. You have placed your bets. My sons' lives are on the line, as well. They will all live or die based on your bets. Good luck and God speed to all of us.

Considering that Bloody Kristol is one of those responsible for both the mishandling of the war of Afghanistan and the catastrophic Iraq misadventure, I think his criticism of Obama's policies is pretty rich.

Bush claimed he was a war president. He was, in fact, a moron, and Mr. Kristol is another one--a smirking, preening moron.

Billy Kristol once more shows us that the Goebbel-like brainpower that helped put God's pure fool (AKA: George W. Bush) in the White House can still spin Dixiecrat (AKA:Republican) propaganda with the best of them. How ingenuous of Mr. Kristol to deal with the fact of President Obama's stratospheric approval rating and Dixiecrat disarray by weaving out of whole cloth a yarn about Obama’s alleged foreign policy shortcomings. Three cheers for you, Mr. Kristol. You remain one of the leading snake-in-the-grass Dixiecrat propagandists of all time. You have revealed once more that you do, too, have the brainpower that could put God's pure fool in the presidency for eight years. Your intellectual kinship with George W. Bush remains intact.

Hmmm. Billy Kristol, Billy Kristol. Isn't he the same guy who played a prominent role in getting George W. Bush elected President of the United States--twice? And didn't he serve as one of Bush's chief apologists, even as George brought massive corruption and incompetence to Washington? Isn’t Kristol one of those strange people who call themselves conservatives and told us that if we put them in charge, they would impose fiscal responsibility and cut the federal government down to size? So we put them in charge, and many years later, the economy has collapsed, the federal budget, debt, and earmarks are out of control, and the federal government intrudes into our private lives more than ever. And isn't Billy Kristol one of those leading Dixiecrats who, not content to inflict George Bush on us for eight years, now want to inflict Sarah Palin on us and state with a straight face that she is fully qualified to be President of the United States?

Since the record clearly shows that Billy Kristol is a liar, a fraud, and ignorant as the side of a barn, why should we believe anything he says about anything? And why is such a proven liar and fraud a columnist on a major American newspaper?

I didn´t know that Kristol was writing in The Post... well nobody is perfect. I think is waist of time reading Mr. Kristol because he is too partisan and its not even relevant for a real debate.
Please Washington Post there are better republicans in the news area to hire. NOT KRISTOL !!!

Oh Bill, poor poor dear Bill,
You say Obama is not a "war time president" well, wake up and smell the IED's, on a Sunday morning, neither was Bush. We have all painfully learned that a President can begin a war. But the true reality is, is that it takes a "war time president" who possesses the intelligence and a capacity to discern truth from error, to win a war.
It's a real pity your "politics" blinds you to that reality. I'd say shame on you, but you wouldn't get it..Aw, what the hell, "shame on you."
"War time president?" It will take a wartime president to get us out of your and Bush's war. A war you championed from it's cherry-picking-fact-finding-beginning.

Conservative pundit William Kristol laments the fact that President Obama devoted only a few sentences to the "war on terror," and precipitately concludes that Obama is not a "war president."

Had Mr. Obama asked Mr. Kristol to write that address to Congress last night, given his mental state as a "neocon," he probably would have devoted half the 52-minute speech to the "war on terror."

But it is obvious that Mr. Obama is not Mr. Bush who was enamored of his "war on terror," in particular on his "Iraq Folly."

Mr. Obama is focusing his attention and his energies on stopping the recession dead in its tracks and laying the foundation for restoring America to health, vigor and prosperity.

Yes, Mr. Obama has not totally forgotten the "war on terror." He is going to deliver on his promise to withdraw U.S. military forces from Iraq. And he is sending 17,000 more U.S. troops as reinforcements to the U.S. forces already there.

Who pays Kristol anyway???
As one of the top salesmen of the Iraq disaster, he now wants to start a new war with Iran?
OK......THEY TOO HAVE LOTS OF OIL......but Iran (unlike Iraq) will certainly fight back.

Leave it to Kristol, the war mongering neoconservative. Obama focused on the economy because that IS foremost on American's minds, you know the economy that the Republicans are largely responsible for destroying with years of deregulation, failed oversight, and all those big tax breaks for the rich. The arrogance of Kristol is amazing, the guy who was wrong about everything during the Bush years is still given a huge platform to display his insanity.

Thank heaven Obama doesn't see himself as the "war president." That was George Bush. We have a new president who doesn't appear to need a little war to prove his manhood. War is failure. It's a failure of diplomacy and of communication. War, because it means sacrificing our young people, should be a last resort and certainly not something to hope for. For someone who salivates for war, what, exactly, is your military experience, Mr. Kristol?

"Obama did acknowledge in passing that for seven years we have been “a nation at war.” But that fact was barely reflected in his text."

This fact NEVER was reflected in GWB´s policies which only were "just consume, the war on terror will cost nothing, there are no coffins coming back, the people of the US will not be inconvenienced by this war". When did Kristol complain about that?

"...because Americans might have to be summoned to deal with them." And when did GBW prepare Americans for this eventuality?

Is Iran the only nation we can attack aren't there others who deserve our righteous wrath. Why kill just a few million Iranians there are billions of people in the world. This conservative ideal of war is too limited. Let restart the draft so that we enough bodies to grow this war machine to the proper size then take on the world. Somebody has to step up and lead. After we conquer this planet lets go after those damn extraterrestrials that have been violating our air space for so long. I heard that they are only doing those flyovers to spy on our nuclear program. We should not let this continue

Obama neglects to state we can withdraw from Iraq due to the success, and not his time table. Leaving Iraq has nothing to do with our politicians in DC, but our military. Maybe he used only a one-sentence discussion of Afghanistan because it is unclear of his strategic plan. I am sure the media will not hold his feet to the fire about sending troops to Afghanistan during his time in office.

I want the US to work as hard for peace as it worked for war. No more invaisons, work out treaties, support UN peace iniatives. Then we can afford to treat our own citizens as well as citizens are treated in other civilized countries.

Kristol seems to believe that building the economy, improving the education and health care are not worthy causes. That is, for him neither the American people nor the rest of the world deserve to live in peace and have a quality of life. As a neoconservative, Kristol prefers war and destruction. This is because only in chaos and instability that the neoconservatives can thrive. Destruction and death give them satisfaction and energy.

Along with his other contributions Mr. Kristol was one of the Republican cruise ship pundits seduced by the young, attractive Governor of Alaska in Juneau. He pushed hard for her political nationalization. Way to go Willie.

Bill Kristol is right on the mark. This is not a President who takes his role as a war president as any kind of priority. He is a leftist big spender who is soft in the area of foreign policy and, absolutely, comfortable walking softly but not at all comfortable carrying a big stick.

Poor little Billy K . . . he sounds soooo sad . . . what's the matter? No one listening to your delusional drivel anymore? Awwwwwwwwww, there, there -- ask your unofficial party leader, Rush Limpballs, if he can hook you up with some oxycotin -- I hear he keeps a stash of about 4,000 pills around . . . a month's worth for him.

No, Bill, we don't intend to continue subsidizing the likes of Halliburton/KBR and Exxon-Mobil for your War for Corporate Welfare in Iraq . . . and, yes, the military option (which you are so fond of invoking -- as long as you're not called on to enlist! -- right?) isn't Prez Obama's first, knee-jerk reaction to every crisis (as YOU see it) that threatens Israel -- whom you seem to have more patriotism for than the US.

You're simply an over-indulged fool who fell victim to a very cruel joke, long ago: someone told you, you could write.

Kristol is lost as is most of the Republican Party. The same ole BS comes forth from these speaking head that constantly reiterates the same ole spiel. No sign of learning from your mistakes nor of thinking for the betterment of the population. Jindel more of the same.
The Republicans did have one courages member Charlie Crist who spoke well and made sense. But to the Republican's show of stupidity, they shot him down as a betrayer of their values.
The Moderate Republicans would be better served if they would create a third party and dump the Kristols, Limbaughs, Coulters and get back to making sense.

A very revealing sentence in this garbage is, "Obama doesn’t seem to think his responsibility as commander in chief is in any way special." Obviously, Kristol pines for the days of W, who wore the burden of being a "war president" on his sleeve. Bush clearly thought of himself as special, while mismanaging the wars, the military support apparatus, the economy which underpins any military endeavor, and our foreigm policy.

Obama clearly understands the weight of his military responsibilities, but in a more global way, appreciating how our nation's economic health and foeign diplomacy contribute to military success.

Spoken like a true, well-off, conservative...Now, what planet is this fool on? 500K people a month are losing their jobs, the econonmy is in a shambles, everyday a business is filing for bankruptcy or laying off workers, and Mr. Kristol wants to criticize the President for not talking about the neo conservative war that helped throw republicans out of office? Mr.Kristol, last night NO ONE was interested in hearing about your war.

Democrats may have some old ideas tied to FDR and LBJ; but at least they are not the bad ideas of no regulation, an unfunded war and unfair taxes, etc...

As long as the republican line up consists of Limbaugh, Hannity, Kristol, Palin, Steele (a real disappointment) and now Jindal...we are assured that Rush and Sean will continue to make a lot of money priming the exact same listener (it is obvious they share the same listener--no new voters), the republican base will remain stagnant, and the Democrats may hold office long enough for Malika Obama to run for President.

Please, Mr. Kristol.
As you yourself point out, the speech was supposed to be about the economy - and it mainly was.

Perhaps President Obama appears to see nothing special about his role as "Commander in Chief" because he doesn't. Overseeing and directing America's armed forces is just one of the president's jobs. The Constitution says that the President is "Commander in Chief" of the armed forces mainly, I would think, to make clear that the military is subordinate to and takes its orders from the civilian leaders of government. (The president is not and was never meant to be some sort of "generalisimo" or "war chief.")

And perhaps President Obama does not indicate that he is contemplating the use of military force against Iran is because - he isn't. (He just may - correctly in my view - think that would be a very foolish thing to do.)

More of the same BS. You remind me of the clown in stocks that we love to throw tomatoes at. I believe that you know you are on the wrong side of morality, but that you just can't help yourself and continue to spout this nonsensical garbage.
If you want a war, I can't wait for the investigations to begin. I can't wait to see the loyal Bushies, the torturers, the constitutional criminals exposed for what they are: Fascists.

You would think that after being canned by the Times Kristol would at least TRY this time. But no. Kristol is going to hell in a handbag before he even attempts to be intellectually honest. It's Palin or bust for him.

He's right, though. Obama must not think of himself as a war president based on the speech. He must also not think of the American people as a bunch of marks to be swindled by down home talk. He must not think of himself like a Louisiana snake oil salesman. He must not think of himself as a lazy columnist interested only in high salary and low taxes masquerading as a pundit.

BTW, Kristol, the American people have repeatedly rejected all those things he isn't and the Republicans are.

Kristol says Obama in his speech last night did not feel his role as C in C is in any way special, as if it is something akin to being picked homecoming queen. There is nothing special, and never should be, as it pertains to the president's job as C in C. We are a civilian nation with civilians in charge of the military and a civilian legislature and a civilian as C in C. WE saw with Bush what happens to us as a people when the president takes too seriously his duties as C in C.
Also, Kristol says Obama's speech did nothing to educate us about the theater (afghanistan) into which he is sending additional troops.
Everything I wanted to know about Afghanistan I learned almost 8 years ago when the then C in C was asleep at the switch and 3000 Americans lost their lives.What we know about Afghanistan today is that those 17000 troops are being sent to RE-fight the war that should have been won those 8 years ago. How about eductaing the American people on THAT point, Mr. Kristol?

Billy-Boy, there you go with your warmongering again. What's your own military record, Bill? I have surprising news for you: Bush wasn't a war president either, nor was Cheney. Neither of them knew anything about war, its atrocities, its persistent tragedies. They just knew, like yourself, how to get people killed for lies, for their own private agendas. Let's get you and Rush and your IAPAC buddies out on a few combat patrols, and then see how many flags you want to wave afterward, OK?

Well, he didn't try to scare the country with terrorism like you sorry rightwing asshats. What the hell is wrong with you Kristol? Did you get kicked in the head by a mule when you were a child or are you retarded? Did you see the results of the last two elections you dimwitted ***k?

WE ARE SICK OF SCUMSUCKING COWARDS LIKE YOU USING FEAR AS YOUR MOTIVATOR.

Personally? If we never hear from you again I'd be happy. The WP is stupid for even printing your swill.

The WAPO debases itself by giving this clown a forum on its pages, just like the NYT did. I have a question for whoever made that decision: Does his resume highlight the fact that he's been wrong about everything in his commentary full of lies, misrepresentations, and out-of-context quotes for the last 16 years?
Because apparently that's just what you were looking for in an opinion writer. Shoot, I could lie and be wrong all of the time if you want...

Instead of trying to tear Obama down, why don't you try to appeal to moderates and independents by complimenting the new voice of your own party, Bobby Jindal. You may win some respect back from your harsh critics. Tell us all why we should line up and march in step with Bobby.

Or, better yet, read up on how Bobby exorcised the devil, yes this is true; it is chronicled in Bobby's own words. He actually removed the devil from a young woman with cancer.

Come on, Bill. Take the other tack for once. Proudly promote the new Republican leadership. Stop wasting your time tearing down the Democrats.

Ah, in some weird way it's comforting to know that the head-in-the-sand, mentally ill, angry liberals are still alive and kickin'!!!

I am sure the people in this world that would kill you (meaning the most liberal among us) first have forgotten their sworn mission of the destruction of the West because we are "tired of talking about it." I'm sure that's how they see it. Right?

I bet the WAPO will trot out the old, tired excuse that Kristol's writing "challenges" liberals. Let me address that: There's nothing challenging about complete intellectual dishonesty, and the only thing challenging about Kristol is reading or listening to him with a straight face.

I'm all for freedom of speech, WAPO, but there are plenty of garbage media outlets (Fox News, NY Post, WA Times, etc) that would be happy to host this delusional hack.
As for addressing the substance of the column-why bother? It's Kristol, so it's a big, steaming pile of BS, just like usual.

You can't legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else. When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. How in the world does anyone think that you can multiply wealth by dividing it?

geez, obama didn't say a thing about the war on drugs, or dirty bombs, or internet predators, or partial birth abortion or any of the other scary boogeymen the far right can't stop yammering about in order to change the subject from responsible, sensible action in the time of crisis.

here's the irrefutable fact: kristol, like gwbush, got his job because his daddy got it for him. and kristol, like gwbush (and cheney), LOVE to go to war, as long as they're not the ones doing the actual fighting.

This was the speech of a man focused on a clear and present danger, our economy. Period.

To assume that he doesn't think of himself as a war president is stupid. In this speech, at this moment, President Obama does not think of himself as a war president first and foremost and that's OK with me.

I, for one, have had enough of a president who is a war president first, last and only. That got us nothing but war and more war.

The capacity of the right to find some fault, any fault, is dumbfounding. Kristol makes himself look silly and pointless with this article.

At the risk of giving the Post the impression you have a large, if hostile, readership, these overwhelmingly negative responses to your silly war-mongering huffing and puffing may perhaps let the Post know your intellectual capacity is limited to the sputterings of a chicken-hawk. Ad hominems aside (tho it's difficult not to indulge that particular informal fallacy), President Obama clearly considers war to be, not an adjective modifying "President", but a serious matter for reflection. You and all the other neocons want to use our troops as pawns in your "war games." You, as Kant might put it, promote the use of people as mere means to the goal of American military-corporate dominance, i.e. fascism.

Billy "War is Terrifically Good" Kristol is up to his old discredited chicken-hawk neocon bullkrap. Billy, you are politically irrelevant, but still good for a laugh or two. By the way, Billy, you never served in the military did you?

Mr. Kristol has demonstrated that he has nothing but scorn for those who serve our country. He praised Cheney and Bush, both of whom carefully avoided military service, but feels free to criticize Obama, who actually understands and respects our troops in ways that the prior administration proved incapable of understanding. Mr. Kristol himself, of course, has no military expertise, but he considers himself expert on the topic--- just as he considers himself expert on virtually every other topic about which he chooses to bloviate. It would be really refreshing if Mr. Kristol would (just once!!) try to say something in support our nation, rather than serving as a cheerleader for neoconservative policies which have undermined and diminished our national interests.

Kristol - Weren't you recently fired from the New York Times? You should have been a comedian - too bad someone stole your name.

The 28 year old "Reagan Revolution" of Voodoo Economics has brought America to its knees, and the American People finally see through the bankrupt philosophy of Anti-Government and Anti-Middle Class hypocrisy.

If President Obama truly does stand up for the American People and calls bullsh*t on the corruption at CitiBank, BofA, Wall Street, etc he will be one of the greatest presidents of all time.

The Republicans got nothin'... And they know it.

Bush rode out of town leaving a stain on that party that will last for decades. And a legacy of grumpy old men in depends (McCain, McConnell, Gingrich, Cheney, etc), a few who might as well be wearing tutus (Lindsey Graham, etc), and a broken down fascist prom queen (Palin) to pick up the pieces. And boy wonder Jindal who used Hurricane Katrina as an example of the incompetence of the Party of No.

How many times does somebody get to be completely worng and still get to use the legitimacy of a major media outlet for his idiotic rants? can somebody, anybody tell me what Kristol's been right about this century?

Kristol's crystal ball's crack is about to split the orb into pieces.
Diplomacy is going to win present and future wars simply because we can't afford to "Bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb, bomb Iran" as Kristol would like us to.
I tell you what would really make Kristol's hatred of Obama and his agenda come to a boiling point: Establish a Department of PEACE who's sole purpose is to use diplomacy exclusively to solve international problems.
Oh, boy! Would that throw him over the edge, or what!

There are idiots, there are moronic idiots & then there is William Kristol. Mr. Kristol, you want a war president? Go to Texas. You will find one in Crawford/Dallas. He might need a handyman, because he is buying some things from hardware stores. Help him out & sit & listen to his "war president" stories. Spare us the stink of your BS.

Kristol is a one trick pony, a Johnny One Note. As a man child who never wore a uniform he redefines hypocrisy in his calling for war on all the dangerous people out there. He is a neo-con Zionist
who is more supportive of Israel than his own country.

He will beat the war drums, portraying Iran as a threat to Israel which must be dealt with militarily. He's an AIPAC shill who cheers on the military/industrial establishment.

He was fired by the NY Times for behind the scenes involvement in GOP strategy during the last campaign, while spinning GOP propaganda in his Times column.

I'm disappointed in the judgment of WaPo for hiring him. He has his own soap box at the right wingnut Weekly Standard. His views should not be supported by a newspaper of the high standing which the Washington Post enjoys.

So many comments disrespectful of Wm Kristol this morning. Most are on the mark.

How does criticism of Kristol's aggressive support for using America to protect Israel's state terrorism, a subject of legitimate debate anywhere other than the U.S. media and government, become an "attack on his religion" and anti-Semitism? Just curious.

Kristol is correct that the war in Afghanistan/Pakistan has the potential to get out of hand and presents a danger to us should American-made radicals get their hands on Pakistan's nuclear weapons. What Kristol refuses to contemplate or acknowledge is that the policies he and his Neocon friends advocate, and Bush implemented, are largely responsible for the conditions that gave those American-made radicals their power to put us in danger.

The only solution is for Obama to bring Israel under control and get us the hell out of Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and LEAVE THOSE PEOPLE ALONE.

There is no war. If there is any "socialism" that we need to get rid of, it is the defense budget which is the largest corporate welfare program in history. The US spends $700+ billion a year on defense -- more than all other countries combined. That is a fact. Check it.

Think about it. More than the entire stimulus plan, every year, even though we have no enemies. Oh, sorry, $700 billion a year to fight illiterates with pipe bombs.

Iran demonstrated its ballistic capability last week, North Korea now says "hey great idea.. we'll test our ballistic missile and pretend to launch a satellite too". Israel has just elected a right-wing gov. and PM who is very focused on Iran.

That unexpected early-term crisis that VP Biden warned us about is out there. Hopefully Obama is ready for that 3AM call from General Petraus.

What is Kristol doing in the WaPo? Is this because the NYT booted him?? Seriously, why does anyone publish this buffoon? He has been proven wrong soo many times. We are facing the biggest economic crisis in decades--that was the subject of the speech!! "War President"? Um, I've noticed that he's trying to rebuild our reputation and alliances around the world. That seems more constructive than just starting wars that drag on for years, kill American troops, kill civilians, and inflame the Islamic radicals even more. Remember, that Bin Laden thought that the war in Iraq was the best gift he could have received.

Kristol is an idiot. He is a HORRIBLE ANALYST!! Our entire society is falling apart because of the administration and GOP that he supported. Screw him, screw him, screw him.

pvilso24 said: "Iran demonstrated its ballistic capability last week, North Korea now says "hey great idea.. we'll test our ballistic missile and pretend to launch a satellite too". Israel has just elected a right-wing gov. and PM who is very focused on Iran."

-- If Israel and Iran want to dude it out, let them. Just don't send any more military equipment and money over there. But ask WaPo to spare Kristol and send him over there. He's now probably more effective fighting his own war than asking the Americans to support it anyway.

When President Obama does get around to educating the American public about Afghanistan and Iraq, I expect that he will tell us things that are TRUE. That will be a nice change from the previous administration.

So the President didn't spend a lot of time in his economic speech talking about foreign policy and Bill Kristol didn't spend any time in his column about that speech talking about the economy. One of these people comes off as insightful and focused on the problems we're facing and the other comes off as a moron. Because Kristol is probably too stupid to figure it out, I'll give you a hint and say that the President was the insightful one.

When did the Washington Post become an aid society for half-wit conservative hacks? Why didn't Bill Kristol get the message when the Times told him to get lost? Maybe after watching its earnings drop 77%, the Post Co will finally do the right thing and get rid of Fred Hiatt and his legion of imbeciles.

Is he trying to be humorous or is he really that blind. The generals tell us we are losing the war in Afghanistan, Obama adds 17,000 as a down payment on the 30,000 increase he promised and this is bad. Just to clue this ignoramus in, Iran can't build a bomb without plutonium which can be produced only at the heavy water reactor at Arak. One cruise missle ends their nuclear aspirations as Israel did to Iraq and Syria. Israel has tested refueling run to the Mediterranean to do it when the satelite heat signature says Arak is processing. Kristol ignores rebuttal, historical and verbal to trot out the same lost vision of Reaganomics that has utterly failed.

"This was not the speech of a man who even contemplates the possibility of using force within the next year to prevent Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons."

This made me laugh. Since every single one of our intelligence agencies say that Iran is not developing nuclear weapons, what would be the basis for Obama ordering drastic (and futile) military action against Iran this year?

Obama has shown a lot of public weakness internationally, and we are seeing the results come fast and furious. For that he should be castigated.

However, even though rhetoric is important, we should not judge Obama on what he says as much as what he does. If he's a speak softly and carry a big stick guy - great. I worry he's not, and don't like his actions so far, but let's wait and see.

But this one speech was about the economy. He asserted his promise to protect America and go after terrorists.

You know, Iran wouldn't be a threat at all if your idiot collegue in neoconservativism, David Frum hadn't put them on the "axis of evil" and your sublime moron President Bush hadn't thrown their overture of peace in the garbage.

They did this, because the neoconservative fantasy was that 60-100K US troops could go around knocking off governments and make the world safe for capitalism. Iraq was the test case. They picked the militarily weakest adversary and even then their moronic plan fell down when the reality of occupation hit.

Well, Bill, if we were to replace the energy for which we now depend on oil, we wouldn't really need the wars so much, now would we? Fighting wars to protect our access to the single greatest drain on our potential prosperity doesn't seem strategically sound in the first place.

If we have enough energy available, we can make our domestic oil supplies suffice for our needs. There is nothing we could possibly do that would be more effective in starving the sponsors of global terrorism.

The most successful war, Bill, is the war you win without actually fighting.

Thanks, neo-con man Kristol -- I needed a good laugh. I see you still haven't learned that we can't spread democracy at gunpoint. Why don't you go look for those nonexistent WMDs in Iraq and let the grownups run America?

The polish if off of this turd also known as Obama. He is green behind those big ears and the international community knows it. But by all means, please continue to believe you can negotiate with Iran and Syria. When things go south, and they will, the American people will rightly throw these ignorant idiots out of office.

I understand the Post's desire to share opinions from across the political spectrum. But it would be helpful to have someone who actually seems to know something. Bill Kristol, recent NY Times castoff, Has demonstrated an immense talent for being flat wrong about most everything, and yet here he is again. It is truly a shame that what has been a great newspaper speeds down the road to irrelevancy by trying to appeal to an audience that is already irrelevant. I suppose misery does love company.

This was the speech of a president who is not George W. Bush, and thank God. New president, new ideas and new priorities.

Mr. Kristol, consider the novel idea that the primary job of the commander in chief is to provide peace and prosperity for citizens, not war and poverty. But then, your constituancy profits from war and the disempowerment of average working folks so I guess for you peace doesn't pay. You have my sincere sympathy.

Of course, President Obama is not a "war president." We are not at war. We are engaged in an illegal occupation of one country, Iraq, and in what is essentially law-enforcement in another, Afghanistan. Bush's so-called "Global War on Terror" was nothing more than a sorry excuse to shred the US Constitution for political and financial gain. Mr. Obama is wisely avoiding militaristic hyperbole.

bulldogfan26 wrote: "He is green behind those big ears and the international community knows it."

+++++++++++++
Guess you did not see the hundreds of thousands greeting him in Berlin even before he was president, or 'obamamania' in Canada recently. And, you can disagree with Obama and his team, but calling them "ignorant idiots" is a little strange considering the team that they replaced.

Welcome to WaPo, the shelter for out-of-work, discredited neocon traitors. Kristol's presence is yet another reason to refuse to subscribe or purchase the paper since money or more precisely, a shortage of it, is the only thing that gets the attention of WaPo management.

Kristol the smirking war criminal has never been correct on anything political. Literally, his record is 100% wrong, economy, regulation, policy, foreign or domestic, issues of law. Where he hasn't lied, he's been factually incorrect. As shameful as his screeds are, he lacks the perception to actually feel ashamed. This piece, however, descends to a new low. The impossible gall of Kristol to write about wartime ANYTHING. He and is fellow neocons have zero grasp of war fighting. Strategy, supply lines, morale, mission parameters, all of these essentials are viewed as "details, details"
Now, fired from the NY Times for his appalling, relentless incompetence, this punchline failure hack finds a home at the Post, which clatters on toward irrelevence. Pathetic.

Prepare for lean times in the field of fearmongering and sabre-rattling punditry. War fever is out of fashion, these days it's the economy, stupid.

And you know even less about economics than you do about war."

+1

"This was the speech of a president who is not George W. Bush, and thank God. New president, new ideas and new priorities.

Mr. Kristol, consider the novel idea that the primary job of the commander in chief is to provide peace and prosperity for citizens, not war and poverty. But then, your constituancy profits from war and the disempowerment of average working folks so I guess for you peace doesn't pay. You have my sincere sympathy."

Owned.

My prediction: Kristol will shamelessly regurgitate the same tired rhetoric again this time next week!

There is one apodictic and incontestable truth present in the universe - Billy Kristol is always erroneous. Dargone he just always gets it wrong. In addition, it is hard to think of a more morally loathsome creature at this stage in planetary evolution.

I guess it's a measure of national progress that Mr. Kristol is viewed today not so much as a danger than as a goof, an apparently sincere espouser of bona fide idiocies.

Clearly, it's not necessary to remind ourselves that Mr. Kristol's divorce from relevancy, cogency, and reality has become nothing more than excess fodder for the laughingstock. But perhaps someone could clue-in the editor of this publication.

The old warriors like Kristol never seem to get it. The so-called war against terror will never be won because it is against a tactic, not against anything or anyone concrete. We have had terrorism with us throughout history. Just one example: the anarchists of the early 20th century. Why are they no longer a threat? Because they accomplished nothing and their supporters drifted away. That is the best we can hope for against Al Quaeda and other related extremists, not a victory in an illusory war. Let us treat it as what it is, a containment problem, not a call to arms.

I think that was the whole point. A "war president" is what got us in this mess. If the US hadn't been spending so much on an unnecessary war we would have the surplus to get out of the economic trouble.

You want to play cards? I'll put one down, then you put one down. Whoever's card is higher gets both cards. Then you put one down and I put one down and whoevers card is higher takes both. Then whoever gets bored first

Since you vacated your last known address at the NYT, we have been trying to locate you concerning your share of the debt owed to the American people for the cost of the debacle in Iraq. Please remit a payment immediately.

Everyone reading this page should amuse and educate themselves by checking out this enlightening blog posting about our hot-house flower columnist:

http://thegspot.typepad.com/blog/2008/10/most-awesome-wi.html

Kristol is George W. Bush's soul-mate because their life-careers have been one and the same. They are pampered children of rich and powerful men, who have only known lives of luxury, and have had their whole way through life greased by inherited money and connections.

In the case of Kristol his greatest accomplishment is having stepped into his daddy's still-warm shoes at the Weekly Standard, a position he has since served without distinction.

As with G. W. Bush, the clearly talentless Kristol has had his every failure rewarded with promotion to positions of greater prominence and power.

And I was so hoping Obama would announce that he's going to plunge us into another unnecessary war in the Middle East and squander another trillion dollars that we desparately need, just like his predecessor did.

C'mmn, Barack. Stop talking about unimportant stuff like....the worst economy since the Depression...and instead listen to Kristol: rattle those sabers, and let the bombs drop and the missiles fly!

I must admit that, reading this, I began to think about what was being said. My conclusion is that I truly don't understand why a guy who has been wrong so many times has any illusions that his opinions matter? What was written herein is nonsense, again.

NotEasy Posted:
Correct me if I am wrong, but did the Dems not run in 2004 on a retreat platform? Now, retreat is a plausible platform to run on if you think the mission is a mistake/unwinnable, but doesn't retreat entail defeat?
-----------------------------------------
I will correct you. The answer is no! The democrats ran on the Iraq war being a mistake that needs to be stopped and corrected. It was the republican candidates that characterize the Democrats' Iraq War position as defeatist, cut & run, cowardice etc.. The majority of the American people agreed with the Democrats and oust the Republicans.

The republicans keep obfuscating the truth and are doing such a poor job of it that it insults our intelligence. Bill Kristol is doing this very thing with this column.

Dear WP Editorial Staff,
Mr. Kristol is using the editorial page to peddle propaganda,not ideas. A newspaper's commitment in the editorial section is to expose readers to intelligent arguments and well thought out ideas. Mr. Kristol does not provide any ideas worthy of this newspaper and his arguments are not intelligent, in the least bit. He uses his pen to articulate propaganda meant to serve the ideology of right wing zionists and neocons that believe the US should use its military might to protect Isarel's apartheid project at all costs. Israel is threatened more by its behavior than by its neighbors. Kadima, Labor and even Ariel Sharon understood that the rightful return of occupied land to the palestinians is the best way to protect Israel's sovereignty and interests in the centuries to come. Mr. Kristol believes that perpetuating war in the middle east with US dollars and blood is the best way to keep a bloody status quo that serves his narrow ideologically driven world view. There is nothing wrong with believing garbage, but there is something distasteful when a reputable newspaper gives a servant of offensive ideologies a space to propagate his message. Mr. Kristol is not in the business of ideas but of ideology. Furthermore, he is a paranoid personality type giving his rants a decidedly disturbing feel. We do not need that, No?

Mr. Kristol, if the American public is not yet schooled on the "theatre" in Afghanistan, then President Obama cannot educate them - they don't want to know. The majority of Americans are well aware of what is going on there, and for the need for more support. It has hardly been a secret.

Are you truly so obtuse? That's a rhetorical question, by the way, as it is apparent that your move from the NYT to the WaPo hasn't affected your income - or you would have paid more attention to what was said than what wasn't. Unfortunately, the same can not be said for many Americans who are wondering where the money will come from to put food on the table and pay the electric bill. They wanted to hear about what plans this administration has for revitalizing the US economy.

Right now, Americans are not worried about Iran, they are worried about their kids, their homes and their jobs. I know, I know, what a bunch of selfish no-goods.

If you can nothing more than "think of Iran!" to complain about in Obama's speech, you truly should STFU.

NotEasy Posted:
Correct me if I am wrong, but did the Dems not run in 2004 on a retreat platform? Now, retreat is a plausible platform to run on if you think the mission is a mistake/unwinnable, but doesn't retreat entail defeat?
-----------------------------------------
I will correct you. The answer is no! The democrats ran on the Iraq war being a mistake that needs to be stopped and corrected. It was the republican candidates that characterize the Democrats' Iraq War position as defeatist, cut & run, cowardice etc.. The majority of the American people agreed with the Democrats and oust the Republicans.

The republicans keep obfuscating the truth and are doing such a poor job of it that it insults our intelligence. Bill Kristol is doing this very thing with this column.

Kristol is not a war correspondent and I might add the last President (Bush if you've forgotten) was certainly not a war President. One screw up after another and one lie after another. How quickly Mr Kristol forgets. We are in a real fix right now due to the stupid ideology of Mr Kristol and others of their ilk.

Once you guys figure out that little Billy is that same kid in High School that everyone avoided and laughed at you can begin to understand why he is so negative even in the face of facts. People just don't like him...BUT to truly understand why Billy continues on his kamakazi quest you have to take the above into consideration and then apply it to a good looking woman paying him some attenion. He is courting Sarah the Stupid Palin folks. LOL He HAS to make sure he does his part to damage our President so that she can run against him in 2012! She is his shining hope for the future....and he is her tool of the moment LOL
Obama mentioned the War many times last night. If that isn't good enough for Bill the Tool? LOL Then that is pretty telling as to his real agenda......Ya drool Bill, go wipe your face because somewhere? Your parents are embarrassed of you and when you lay your little pointy head down tonight to go to sleep? Think about how many people in this country would be happy to see living in Iraq.

The Dimocrats and NeoComs have embraced the delusion that Islamacism and jihadism were dreamed up by Bush to somehow deprive them of their `rights.' Sadly, the threat from these terrorists existed long before Bush. The threat is even more real today as Syria prepares a missile site at the location where construction of a nuclear facility was attempted, and the Iranians spin highly enriched uranium. Then there's Afghanistan and Pakistan. Ignoring it all and hoping it goes away invites tragedy.

I notice that nearly all of the reactions to William Kristol's article are very negative. The president's oratory sometimes can be effective, but the substance behind it is lacking.

Unfortunately, Iran continues to enrich uranium. Any who believe that Iran is doing so for peaceful purposes would do well to leave their childrens' teeth under the pillow. Ahmedinejad's anti-Israeli rhetoric should give all but the most naive an idea of his intentions. If Iran successfully develops nuclear weapons, "all hell will break loose!" Then, more than noble words will be required to deal with the situation. Perhaps George W. Buch's administration will then be seen as not so bad after all.

The US War Machine will need to be significantly downsized in the coming years. Due to the economic crisis and long-term budget considerations, we as a nation can no longer afford to be the entire world's "policeman" and try to force every other nation on earth to obey our will as though we are the God given leader of the planet. Yes, America has done much good on the world stage, particularly our leading role in WWII; however, the economic realities of today will force us to rethink the limitations of our appropriate role in years to come.

It's time to take the TRILLIONS we spend on building weapons and machinery of death, and invest the money in health care, social programs and education here and abroad.

Specifically, instead of dropping bombs that incite hatred and breed long-term animosity against our nation in various parts of the world, let's now start dropping care packages around the world that include food, medicine and educational materials to build good will and give America the reputation of generousity that it so deserves. All of these products that are donated to the developing world can be mandated to be "Made in the U.S.A" which will stimulate jobs here in the homeland!

The goodwill we generate around the world with a few tens of BILLION dollars of preventative medicine (no pun intended) will save our nation TRILLIONS and TRILLIONS in long term military costs for its expansive war machine. PEPFAR was a great start on this road and is one rare area in which GWB is to be commended.

Of course, I am a dreamer. But, if you think about it, this is wise policy and will end up making our future as a nation and a world much brighter.

If force and weapontry truly needs to be used (such as with Al Queda in Afganistan and the tribal areas of Pakistan), I patriotically say "Go for it!" However, we need a charm offensive as well to be truly effective in our foreign policy!

I still dont believe Kristol is a human being. There cant be real blood running through those veins.He seems more like an avatar from some other universe.

What is true is that Obama intends to pay for his programs from money saved from stopping the fighting in Iraq, or at least withdrawing the majority of our troops. But, more importantly, and something that chickenhawks who are so deathly afraid of Arab and Islamists don't understand, is that the rest of the world understands what Ian Buruma takes pains to describe in his book Occidentalism, is the threat that nonwesterners see as posed by the growing domination of world affairs by the US through the globalization movement. It seems that wherever international trade spreads throughout the planet, there are US lawyers telling emerging countries how to behave, what laws to pass (many that seem to favor the US), and generally by extension how to run their countries. This follow our way or the highway approach by the US has gotten so tiresome that even our ostensible allies are chaffing at how the US, especially under the so called Bush adminstration, conducts foreign policy. ITs simply another form of imperialism and there is no other word for it. But, the US has a wonderful way of cauching its influence, and coercive ways in the langauge of freedom and independence. So, Kristol, because you probably are one of a dying species of neoconism, I will recommend that you and your like actually read the Buruma book and try to see things through other peoples eyes. I know it will be a challenge but you owe it to yourself and your grand children to appear to act like a real human being for once in your life.

Just as I suspected...Obama is a phony. Just like we knew Reagan wasn't a supply-sider when he didn't mention economics at all in his speech about the Star Wars Initiative, we saw last night that Obama fails to understand or appreciate his role as commander in chief. It gets worse: not only is President Obama not a war president, but he apparently does not appreciate or value life, liberty, or the pursuit of happiness. Nor did he mention his formal responsibility, which is to preserve, protect, and uphold the Constitution and faithfully execute the office of the President. Who in hell did we elect?! Time to start impeachment proceedings...

Pls forgive if this is repeating similar comments. Does any one besides me feel his critic of Obama should be in the original German? I bet he paints a lil' black under his nose like Adolph's before he sits down to write for the right. The last time I saw a smile like his a possum was coming out of my garbage can.

Kristol (and his cabal of PNAC crazies) successfully diverted America from making a full-scale effort in Afghanistan and capturing or killing Osama bin Laden.

Kristol (and his cabal of PNAC crazies) cynically used the tragedy of 9/11 as an excuse to enact their long-held plan for a military invasion of Iraq.

For an insight into these lunatics' minds, see the 2000 PNAC document 'Rebuilding America's Defenses: Strategies, Forces, and Resources For a New Century.'

See also the 1998 PNAC letter to President Clinton -- which states, "The only acceptable strategy is one that eliminates the possibility that Iraq will be able to use or threaten to use weapons of mass destruction. In the near term, this means a willingness to undertake military action as diplomacy is clearly failing."

http://www.newamericancentury.org/iraqclintonletter.htm

Many of the PNAC crazies ended up in Bush White House (and on the Op-Ed pages of the Washington Post).

Now Kristol is beating the drums of war again -- with the same tired neo-con rhetoric.

BTW, Billy 'The Joker' Kristol founded PNAC in the same building that houses the American Enterprise Institute.

The American Enterprise Institute was founded by his father, Irving, who is another Zionist chickenhawk -- and is the so-called "godfather of neo-conservatism."

I agree with many of those who wrote here and do not agree with Mr. Kristol's basic points.

At the same time, I think it is important that those of us on the Left listen to the opposition's opinions and meaningfully engage in why we agree or disagree. I fear that we are forever isolating ourselves into Red and Blue Americas.

People in Red America *really* believe what Mr. Kristol (and many others like him) say. I wish that more people on the Right would talk openly with people who do not agree with them. Mr. Kristol is one of the more articulate people on the right. (Though I would rather read David Brooks and George Will.)

I happen to disagree with Mr. Kristol on almost everything. That said, I think WaPo is to be commended for putting someone who does not think like me.

So many commenters cannot deal with reading the writing of Bill Kristol. They are, in fact, offended that he is allowed to write. I assume most of them self-describe as liberals or at least vote Democratic. And yet, with both chambers of Congress and the Presidency under their control, they object to a dissenting voice in the pages of WaPo.

Tells you all you need to know about today's Left (at least those active on he internet anyways).

Because the POTUS defends his country from a different point of view, Kristol who has never seen spent a day in a uniform continues to bloviate about something he can only read about in books and pontificate on FIX News.

Here is a timeless retort to anything that Kristol and the rest of his merry band of NEOCONS have to say about war presidents.

"I have neither the time nor the inclination to explain myself to a man who rises and sleeps under the blanket of the very freedom I provide, and then questions the manner in which I provide it. I would rather you just said 'Thank you' and went on your way.

This was not the speech of a fear mongering chickenhawk. Thanks to the culmination of Reaganomics we have several serious problems to deal with. The neocon war of choice is only one of them. At least Obama seems more focused on going after the terrorists who attacked us.

More tiresome neocon blowhardery from the man that predicted McCain would 'win huge.' Why on earth would anyone listen to this tiresome windbag? When has he ever been right about anything? Why does the WaPo give him a soapbox to spout more insufferable Bush/Cheney-worshipping b.s.?

The GOP Kristol so loves has finally reached its natural state: a small fringe of hillbillies, rednecks and kooky, violent militia types.

"You can't look at past performance as a predictor, otherwise you wouldn't be, obviously, still a pundit." -Jon Stewart, to Kristol

You'd think it would be self evident after all we have been through, that Kristol and his neocon pals have ZERO credibility. Still ginning up new wars after all these years and failures! The best thing the New York Times did was to fire this hack. Why would the times ever waste space on him?

Out of all the issues America is facing, out of all the issues President Obama addressed in his speech, Bill Kristol could only comment on war and nothing else. The narrowness of his focus is alarming. If this is the best a leading neo-conservative thinker can do in these times, then neo-conservatism is long dead. American needs to clear out W and the rest of his garbage thoroughly before we can rebuild.

I continue to be amazed that respectable media outlets such as the Washington Post are willing to give Bill Kristol a platform. Hasn't anyone noticed that Kristol has been continually wrong...about everything...for at least the past 8 years? At what point do we start looking at his miserable track record?

After all, Kristol was a major player in the Project for a New American Century (PNAC), the group that agitated for renewed war in Iraq as far back as the mid-90s. Bush eventually followed Kristol's advice, and what did we get? Quagmire, morass, FUBAR, pick your term. What we DIDN'T get were WMDs, Osama bin Laden, or anything else of value in the GWoT. Thanks for that, Bill! Way to go!

Consider, too, that Kristol's response to every question is "war", just as Rudy Giulliani's response to everything was "9/11." Recession? War! Market collapse? War! Hangnails? War! All war, all the time, go team go!

I suppose one should be grateful that Kristol wasn't around when Pearl Harbor was attacked in December of '41. He probably would have tried to convince Roosevelt to respond by invading Portugal...

This was not a speech delivered by an imp who lied us into a war that killed a hundred thousand Iraqis and five thousand of our own young people. It was a mature speech. President Obama said in a few sentences what W could not speak in an hour of fragmented illogical propaganda. You're a tool, Kristol.

This article goes a long way in proving why the GOP and its think tank found themselves out of favor with the American public in November last year. Americans expect so much from every President and get so little in return that an earlier generation finds it very difficult to believe real improvement when they see it. At best, this is nothing but cynicism. Had President George Bush retained the people's confidence himself, he could have staved off the crisis of confidence this nation is currently facing in regarding its financial institutions and markets and political leadership. Had his tone been that of a wise and seasoned leader, instead of that of a clueless frat boy who found his way to the White House and decided to stick around for the ride, and maybe if he had advised caution and responsibility instead of worry-free spending and a brash overconfidence (his signature style), the country would not find itself in the financial pit we now do. President Obama is a war time President and I think he knows whom he is working for and whom he needs to think of when speaking with the American people. When the armed forces do their job as well as ours are, we can rest assured they have our backs. The crisis, Mr. Kristol is not in the lack of confidence in how our military is doing overseas, but in how our leadership is doing at home. The President's speech last night went a distance to start to mend that situation. Although the country might empathize with your sentiments and penchant for waving an old red rag, you might be among the voices that finds little sympathy or support for saying just how much you miss the DHS color coded warnings and war talk on the drip.

It is Pakistan, not Iran, that matters Mr. Kristol. Iran is a stable country with a functional government. It is not going to wipe itself off the map so it can drop a nuke on Tel Aviv. Pakistan and its 100? nukes could be in the control of the Taliban at any moment. They live in caves, in a primarily brown country. They couldn't tell the difference between a post-nuclear holocaust world and today. You and your buddies have been distracting our nation's attention from the real danger while you fixate on boogeymen.

The clear and present danger in the minds of an overwhelming number of Americans right now is state of the economy, and the President rightfully addressed that very real and immediate crisis in last night's address before Congress. Any attempt to make valid assumptions or draw rational conclusions concerning the President's committment to and/or approach to foreign policy from that speech is both futile and ludicrous.

Kristol is dead right. Obama's trying to be a domestic President. Just like W did before 9/11. I hope it doesn't take another 9/11 to wake up this President.

And it is telling, yet unsurprising, that most of the negative remarks made here attack Kristol personally and make wild claims completely unrelated to Kristol's article.

Posted by: NotEasy

Yes, most posters are just blowing off steam. There's quite a head of pressure after 8 years of Bush-fires.

Kristol is stating a fact, but he's doing more - criticizing Obama for not adhering to the Kristol agenda. Well, none of us voted for Kristol.

But you are mistaken about Bush. The man who was working on his campaign biography in 1999, Mickey Herskowitz, gave an interview to Russ Baker in which he revealed that Bush was already talking about war, possibly with Iraq. He'd noted how wars increased the political capital of Reagan and Thatcher. Bush wanted some of that too, so he could push his agenda through Congress and go down in history as a great president.

The first Secretary of the Treasury revealed that Iraq was on the agenda of the very first cabinet meeting.

Bush always intended to be a war president. Guilt over failing his National Guard obligation? Oedipal impulses? Perhaps, but at least in part, by his own testimony, for self agrandizement. For his own greater glory, Bush has sent tens of thousands to their death.

wow, at least there are no anti-semetic, wimpy liberals posting here ... what trash Obama spews. He deludes himself into thinking that anything FDR did economically is worthing doing again, and better! But wait, there's more! He refuses to forecast the long term effects on national will, on the citizen mindest, which is being slowly formulated into the mush of wards of the state. Brave New World is upon us, and the American sheep are too far-left-educated to see what's happening. Reminds of the anecdote about the second worst feeling being that of finding yourself in hell. The (first) worst feeling is getting a tap on the shoulder and turning around and hearing your children (and grandchildren ... and great-grandchildren ...) ask, "Why didn't you tell us?"

There are lots of ways to disagree with Kristol based on logic, reason, facts, etc. Instead, the liberals on this site resort to name-calling, anti-Semitism, and making comments that show they are ignorant of history.

For example - with the Iranian nukes issue. OF COURSE most Iranians are not happy with their regime. Historically the Persians (what my Iranian friends like to call themselves) are a cultured people with a tradition of learning and both scientific and artistic achievement. Yet it's also a fact that the leaders of that country are a bunch of fanatics who, if they get nukes, will not hesitate to use them. Reality is complex; liberals who refuse to acknowledge the dangers of a nuclear armed Iran are just as deluded as the type who thinks the only good Muslim is a dead Muslim.

Liberals sometimes had good critique of Bush, just like some of the critique of Obama is spot on. Unless you think Obama is the Messiah, you have to admit he is not perfect. And one very telling sign that it may not all be rosy under Obama - after his speech, Wall Street tanked. Any of you liberals that have stocks - your wealth is also eroding, and the way to build it back up is not to tax the wealthy into oblivion but to create an environment where a poor immigrant who comes here and opens up a road-side stand can go on to send his kids to Harvard.

Which brings up Bobby Jindal - the racism inherent in the vitriol against him is astonishing. I guess, to a liberal, racist comments against a dark skinned person are OK if the person is a Republican, because, after all, like the Nazis in their attitude towards the Jews, the left-wingers do not see conservatives as human beings deserving of dignity.

At least Kristol, in his critique of Obama, sticks to parsing the points he made in his speech - he doesn't go into the guy's heritage, youthful indiscretions or make snide racially tinged attacks.

I think it's too soon to make a verdict on Jindal as Governor of Louisiana. However, I think his story - a dark-skinned child of Asian immigrants who arrived here with very little and worked hard to send their son to Harvard - it's the American story that generations of immigrants from Italy or Ireland or China or Greece or Mexico can relate to.

To make racist comments about Jindal or to deny the power of this rags-to-riches story that is replicated thousands of times here in America is petty, mean, and unworthy of anyone who is actually a true liberal - once upon a time, liberals were people who believed in civil discourse, protecting the civil rights of all, being fair, logical, etc. Nowadays it seems like liberals are racist, puerile children engaging in slinging insults instead of civilized, intellectual dialog.

That's right, Kristol, we finally have a PEACE President. The first since John F. Kennedy. (Carter could have been, but he was saddled with that Russian National Security Advisor, who hungered for Communist cadavers.)

Anyway. What do you think happens when the most well-armed, most technologically-advanced nation in the World starts talking about peaceful solutions? Don't bother answering, because you don't have the SOUL necessary to imagine such a scenario. You wouldn't know how to handle it. Neither would any of your fellow neo-cons.

You are all in the desert now, a barren landscape of spiritual emptiness that you deserve for what you have done to contribute to our current economic, social, and spiritual crisis

Kristoll defended President Bush to the end. Therefore, he must lie about the speech given last night just as Bush et al lied to embroil us in a war with Iraq, hid cost of wars, and justified torture. In the speech, Kristoll missed the support for the troops, funding for necessary material, increasing the army and marines (something Bush failed miserably to do) ect. But then, an apologist for Bush must lie about Obama.

...Iran has not bothered its neigbors militarily for hundreds of years---something Israel cannot say during its brief 60 years....

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I beg to disagree. Iran fought a long 8 year war with Iraq in the 1980's.

Posted by: NeedToKnow |
****

Yes - Iran was invaded by Iraq with the complicit assent and material and intelligence support of the US under Ronald Reagan. Saddam had a history as a CIA asset, of which George HW Bush certainly aware.

Why do you think Iran feels a need to have a deterent to nuclear weapons?

And a thwack on the wrist with a ruler to all of you who confuse criticism of Israeli actions, or those who subordinate our national interests to the goals of the Israeli right wing, with anti-Semitism.

Wow! There must be close to a thousand daily Cos communists, Marxists and terrorist sympathizers posting here today. Obama has spread the war into Afganistan, a completely stupid action as no one, not even Alexander the great has ever succeeded there. Pakistan is likely to nuke us because Obama is bombing its citizens right now as we speak. I have long known the WAPO is a communist owned paper, but this confirms it in spades. Not only will Obama bankrupt the US, he will bankrupt the world and try to set himself up as the Emperor of the UN because that is the job he is running for now with all his pathetic, stupid, lying speeches. Kristol is absolutely correct in everything he says and the only people who disagree are with the terrorists.

George W. Bush was not a war time president. On September 11, 2001 Bush failed to protect the American people from a mere 19 men. And the lead perpetrators of this crime and their orgainzation are still alive and well. After turning Bin-Laden and his group into an existential threat to America our country has been exposed as a muscle bound giant with no real focused military nor diplomatic strategy nor goal in Afghanistan that would limit our stay and define victory.

Incompetence and ignorance were also the key features of the Bush war in Iraq. Iraq was a war that also should have never been fought. But it further exposed the limits of American power and vision while decreasing our security. Now every power can use Bush's rationale for this war in their own interests to our detriment. And they know how to drag America into a muddy costly military quagmire.

The victors in the Bush wars so far are Iran, Pakistan and Russia. And the real losers are America, Europe,Turkey and the Arab states

Is your comment satire, or are you a parody of brain-dead dittoheads everywhere?

In case you really meant it, you might remember that Bush launched the invasion and war, and the bombings in Pakistan originated on his watch. And were Obama to pull back, wouldn't you be the first to accuse him of surrender?

First, our last 'war president' was a bumbling incompetent who bogged us down in 2 wars, lost 4200+ soldiers for the mirage of WMD's, strengthened Iran immeasurably and spent 1 trillion dollars (and counting) to accomplish little of lasting value. His arrogance and stubborness cost us our moral leadership, and his torture and detention policies brought us disgrace.He inflamed the most volatile region on the planet and then blithely left the scene accepting no responsibility for anything.

Second, America's military is stretched, tired and in need of respite. We are NOT the world's policeman, despite what Willie the Neo Con warrior believes. We and Iran need a rapproachment for both our sakes, and that does NOT come at the barrel of a gun. Further, Bush's unquestioning financial and political support for a corrupt, divided Pakistani government exacerbated the problem. Dealing with an exit from Iraq and settling the Afghan-Pakistan problem will be akin to untying the Gordian Knot. Military force is the last way we need to try.

With such a series of s*itstorms, it was refreshing NOT to hear Obama bluster and boast. A little humility will serve us far better. The logic of Kristol's position (such as it is) would require more interventionism--something we are clearly unable to do. It's really kind of amusing watching the guys who gave us the disease for eight years pontificate about what the solutions should be. The lemmings who followed the neo-cons playbook, and the conservatives who now embrace them, need to sit in the corner and just shut up. The last 2 elections were a referendum on your solutions, in case the message hasn't reached you yet.

Oh, and by the way, the criticisms of Jindal have been most vitriolic from the right NOT the left--pay attention.

Kristol, why is it that cowards like you are always banging the gong for WAR but would never consider joining the military? You are one slimy low life slug!! Hopefully, the Post's editors will come to their senses and give you the boot just as the New York Times did!! Please go away you scum sucking dog!!!

The conservatives like Billy here are really struggling to find things to criticize. Like Bobby, Billy pulls out his fake adolescent ire, to taunt Obama for being "not man enough" -- as if he wanted to invite him out to the alley for a fight. Huh? Don't these guys believe that huge numbers of Americans are in a war with the economy? Are they so rich themselves that they can't understand what the priorities are, in a speech of limited length? If Obama had focused on the details of his plans (and anyone who reads knows he has plans) for Afghanistan, he'd have been met with total stunned silence! Everyone, even most congresspeople, know it's about the economy, stupid. What Kristol wants is akiin to asking Geo. Bush to address tax cuts with a bullhorn while standing over the shattered and smoking twin towers in 2001. No wonder the GOP is hurting so much for ideas, for creativity, for anything new! They are still little boys hankering to take down the "bad guys" in an alley. The rest of us couldn't be happier to hear a grown-up man lead us out of our adolscent-created quagmires.

Oh, and I think I'll add that Billy's column gets an F for being mind-bogglingly stupid -- maybe it's supposed to be a joke?

Ignoring the rest of the piece, how can he write with a straight face that Obama ought to be terrifying the American public about starting a war with Iran?

If Billy-Bob were president, he'd be gearing up for a third war. Iraq was the stupidest war America ever waged, and it was supposed to be a "cake-walk" if I remember. Thank god Obama knows that a war with Iran would be 1,000 times worse than Iraq -- in wasting human life (which conservatives don't seem to mind wasting in huge numbers -- they only care about the money) -- but it would further the disastrous policies of Bush in the middle east. Some editor for the Washington Post needs to have a talk with little Billy.

Kristol is absolutely correct and you guys are not seeing the truth. Our military is at war and he is sending 17,000 more to another war! The pres was just campaigning in his speech cause that is all he knows how to do! Look at his budget, BO has capped the pay for the military at 2.9%. With all his spending our infation will far out distance 2.9%. He should start cutting the pork out of the budget like he promised instead of capping someone's pay. No, EVERYONE did not agree with BO's speech. I can name many who hated it.

'Not a war president'? Who do you think we are? Klingons? Grow up a little bit. Do you read papers yourself? What has Topic Number One (and Two, and Three) been lately? What has everyone been howling to hear more about? IT'S THE ECONOMY. We elect presidents, not special 'war presidents'. We may just have one that can handle more than one topic.

Oh, and...
'Obama neglects to state we can withdraw from Iraq due to the success, and not his time table. Leaving Iraq has nothing to do with our politicians in DC, but our military'

...yeah, and not the fact that we 'defeated' that enemy by writing them checks. There's your brilliant 'Surge'. I look forward to your comments when we stop sending them, and they flare up again.

WOW, I've read a lot of the comments, and I must say, I've never seen so many attack a person for his views.

The author is correct. Obama is also elected to be the Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces. And he will sell out Israel and make "peace" offerings to Iran as consession for not developing a nuclear weapon....which has been condemned by the UN, not just the US.

Ya'll simply don't understand, they don't want peace. The Middle East has never been at peace throughout its entire history. Muslims have been fighting muslims for thousands of years, now they turn their agression toward the "non-belivers". And you cannot barter with an enemy that wants to kill you and die while doing so.